Chattanooga, Tenn. – No. 5 seed Chattanooga's Anna Dovey drove in five runs and pitcher Taylor Long recorded 11 strikeouts to propel the Mocs to a 10-3 victory over No. 8 seed Furman in the opening game of the 2026 Southern Conference Softball Championship on Thursday morning at Frost Stadium.
Chattanooga (23-27-1) advanced to face No. 4 seed Wofford in the double elimination portion of the tournament on Thursday at 4 p.m. With the loss, Furman concluded its season at 13-40.
Tied at 3-3 in the bottom of the fifth inning, Chattanooga loaded the bases with a pair of singles and a walk before Dovey launched the first pitch of her at bat over the center field fence for a grand slam to give the Mocs a 7-3 lead. The Mocs drew a pair of bases-loaded walks and took advantage of a passed ball to add three more runs in the sixth inning to defeat the Paladins for the fourth time in less than a week.
Long, who improved to 12-15 in the circle, allowed just two earned runs on six hits over seven innings to record the complete-game victory. She worked around six walks and stranded nine Paladins on base while fanning 11 hitters.
Dovey finished 1-for-3 with five RBI to pace the Mocs offense. Ava Cowart collected two hits and scored three runs while Baileigh Pitts homered and drove in three runs.
Starter
Kristyn Embler (8-14) took the loss for Furman. The freshman was tagged for seven runs on six hits in 4.1 innings of work.
Ember went 2-for-4 at the plate with an RBI and
Rachel Hawkins contributed a double, two walks, and two stolen bases to pace a Paladin team that swiped five bags on the day.
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